Samsung Galaxy S9 price leak.

If we’re talking about the price of Samsung flagships. Unconfirmed pricing info suggests that the Galaxy S9 will cost £740 according to one anonymous source while Clove UK even claims £800.

Meanwhile in Norway, the alleged pricing for the S9 is NOK 8,790 and for the Galaxy S9+ it’s NOK 9,790. The country is getting the Midnight Black, Coral Blue and Lilac Purple color options.

The Norwegian price for the Galaxy S9 is equivalent to $1,130/€910, which lines up with Clove’s claim of £800. The old Galaxy S8 launched at £690 while the Galaxy Note8 launched at £870.

Assuming the £740 figure is correct (which should make the Galaxy S9+ £830), then the Galaxy S9 duo will see a £50 price hike. And if the £800 figure is correct, it’s a hefty £110 jump. The Norwegian prices are both up NOK 800.

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Galaxy S9 and S9+ in Lilac Purple get leaked.

Samsung will make the Galaxy S9 and S9+ official at a special event in Barcelona on February 25, and as we get ever closer to that date leaks about these two handsets are starting to pour in. Right now we can show you leaked press renders of both the S9 and the S9+ in Lilac Purple, an intriguing color version for the duo, which was hinted at in a video a few days ago.

This is just one of four main hues that Samsung is preparing (there may be other limited editions as well). Expect to also see the S9 and S9+ in Midnight Black, Titanium Gray, and Coral Blue - though not all markets may get all of these.

These press renders confirm, for the umpteenth time, that the S9+ will have a dual rear camera setup while the smaller S9 will have to make do with a single lens on the back. Additionally, the much rumored vertical arrangement of the island housing the camera(s) and fingerprint sensor is a go, which means using your finger to unlock these Samsung phones will be much easier than hunting for the awkwardly positioned one in the company's flagships from last year.

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Pixel 2 New Update enabled Visual Core for all apps.

Google has started rolling out the February update, which enables the Pixel Visual Core on the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. This will allow third party developers of applications that access the camera API to tap into the Visual Core hardware and access the HDR+ image processing feature that has been available in the main camera app since the beginning.Pixel Visual Core is a custom image processor on the Pixel 2 devices that does hardware acceleration of the various image processing algorithms, primarily the HDR+ effect, which greatly increases the dynamic range of the image while reducing noise. It also includes RAISR, which uses machine learning to upscale digitally zoomed images and make them sharper.

All of these effects were available to the main camera app since the beginning but third party apps that accessed the camera could only take a standard picture without any of this additional processing, which greatly affected the image quality as the Pixel 2 camera without the HDR+ processing really isn't anything to write home about. Developers can now modify their apps to access this hardware if their app supports taking picture so their app can also take the same high quality images as the main camera app.

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Grab a Huawei Mate 10 Pro from UK and get a free tablet and £100 cashback.

Over in the UK, Three has an interesting deal going for people looking to purchase one of Huawei's recent flagship smartphones. Regardless of whether you pick the Mate 10 Pro or the P10, you are set to receive a free tablet.

That is the Huawei MediaPad T3 7.0, apparently a £79.99 value. The catch? You need to commit to a 24-month contract with Three, of course. Plans for the P10 start at £26 per month and £31 per month for the Mate 10 Pro (with a £79 upfront charge in both cases).

The deal is only going to be valid until March 4. If you don't mind having Three as your network and have been interested in Huawei's high-end roster, and you have nothing against getting a free tablet, then this is certainly for you. On top of all that, if you opt for the Mate 10 Pro you will also receive a £100 cashback.

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Mate 10 and 10 Pro software update fixes camera and wireless connectivity.

Huawei Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro are getting an important update – version 8.0.0.127 (SP1C00). The change log is a laundry list of optimizations and fixes.

The bug where the camera would occasionally fail to open or display a black screen has been squashed. The Beautify feature has been improved with “special touches” based on the subject’s gender.

Wireless connectivity got some major fixes too. You can now connect to hidden WiFi networks without issue and you can pause audio when playing over in-car Bluetooth. Related, SIM from carriers in countries with multiple time zones no longer mess up automatic time zone detection.

General improvements to the phone include optimized power consumption (third-party apps are controlled more tightly). Also, the navigation dock is available in Ultra power saving mode.

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Samsung February 2018 security patch ready for release

Samsung users can expect to see the February 2018 security patch rolling out soon as it’s now ready for release. Samsung has detailed the latest security maintenance release for the month of February 2018. The company only ramped up the release of the January 2018 security patch a couple of weeks ago and there are still many devices out there that haven’t received last month’s patch as yet. Nevertheless, we can start looking forward to the February patch now.

February 2018 security patch

All of the patches included by Google in the Android Security Bulletin – February 2018 are present in this security maintenance release. This includes patches for six critical vulnerabilities found in the Android operating system and dozens of high-risk and moderate-risk vulnerabilities.

The most severe issue patched by Google in the latest security bulletin could enable a remote attacker to use a specially crafted file to execute unauthorized code within the context of a privileged process in the Media framework.

The February 2018 security patch also brings fixes for 16 Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items that were found in the company’s own software. It’s only a matter of time now before Samsung starts rolling out this security maintenance release to supported devices.

One can never predict which will be the first device to get the new patch but if history is any indication, Samsung will release the February 2018 security patch to mid-range devices first before rolling it out to flagship models.

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the Samsung Galaxy S9 is the last in the S series. From 2019 the new Galaxy X series will start. Such a move is both logical and problematic. We speculate.
We have already seen them all: the first Galaxy S, the S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, and soon the S9. But: are the South Koreans going to count, or is it time for something else. A new rumor  ( via ) suggests the latter.
Instead of a Galaxy S10, Samsung would start the count again next year with the Galaxy X. Indeed, that name was in the past associated with Samsung's folding phone, but it is equally clear the fork is otherwise in the handle. And for the record: no, Apple obviously did not make up the name X. Samsung recorded the name Galaxy X almost a year ago.
If the count with the Galaxy X starts again Samsung has a big problem. Of course, you can continue with the X2, X3 and so on after the Galaxy X. But Samsug has just adjusted the numbering of its A-series to that of the S-series - see the Galaxy A8 (2018) , so that it corresponds to the Galaxy S8 in terms of generation. We can hardly imagine that Samsung will go further with the Galaxy A1, A2, etc. That brings in confusion at the A3, logically. Or rather: who wants to buy an A2 after all, if that name sounds like the cheapest A Samsung ever released?

No, the fork is different in the stem. And so the only logical move seems  to be stopping counting. If so, we may see a Galaxy X (2019) next to a Galaxy A (2019), and possibly a Galaxy Note (2019) and a Galaxy J (2019). Possibly, if Samsung Samsung stays, they can still be released in the necessary Plus or Mini variants.

All that would mean in the future that Samsung's line-up will indeed be quite simple, with a J, A, X and Note series. And then, for the sake of convenience, we now assume that the current series will continue to exist in their own niche.

So: is that the future of Samsung's smartphone series? How could it be - but remember that all of this is based on one, unverifiable rumor. Nevertheless, the aforementioned brand name registration is a good indication that Samsung has big plans with the Galaxy X name. As we said: otherwise it was not already long before the arrival of a device with that name recorded.

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Intel could be the exclusive LTE modem supplier for 2018 iPhones.

KGI - Securities released the latest note to Apple investors with an accent over the deliveries of LTE modems in the 2018 iPhones. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is going to ditch the Qualcomm platforms for the latest Intel XMM 7560 that supports both GSM and CDMA.

Apple cutting supply from the San Diego company and switching to Intel effectively means there could be one iPhone model that works with all four major US carriers - AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint. The split is also a logical step for the two companies that are entangled in a bunch of lawsuits.

Kuo added that diversification of the deliveries is not off the table and the two companies might decide to work together in exchange for concessions in the ongoing patent war. Apparently, Qualcomm is expecting a lower demand from Apple, and that’s one of the reasons for the deal with 6 Chinese manufacturers, announced 10 days ago.

All three new Apple -  iphone 8, iphone 8 plus, iphone X support 2x2 MIMO technology, while the expected three devices in 2018 might finally have 4x4 MIMO that will bring even faster LTE speeds.

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HTC working on a new budget 18:9 Ratio Smart Phone.

We expect HTC to hold off on major announcements at MWC 2018, more specifically, the U12 

flagship. Still that doesn’t mean the Taiwanese manufacturer has put its smartphone efforts on hold altogether. A fresh new batch of insider info, courtesy of reliable leakster Evan Blass, describes a new entry-level HTC handset on its way to the market.

This comes only days after another mysterious and still unannounced HTC phone was spotted in the GeekBench database. However, unlike the '2Q5W1', with its mid-range specs, this newly unearthed device, codenamed Breeze is described as a budget offer, with only one headlining feature - an 18:9 5.5-inch display.

The rest of the leaked specs sheet is highly unexceptional - 2GB RAM, plus 16GB storage, 13MP main camera setup, a 5MP selfie and an undisclosed MediaTek chipset. To top it all off - a 2,730mAh battery.

The Breeze could potentially be one of the devices HTC unveils at MWC 2018. If the price is right, it could still be a good value offer. Whatever the case, we will be reporting from the Barcelona venue in a few days to keep you up to date with developments.

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Samsung Galaxy S9+ cases leak/ Wireless Charging Pad.

We’ve seen cases by third-party makers leak the design of the upcoming Galaxy S9+, but now we get a chance to look at some of Samsung’s official cases for the upcoming flagship. There’s good news for alcantara fans, but four flip cases are featured too.

In the upper right of the image you see a wireless fast charger with a slightly different design than the S8-generation wireless chargers.

A couple of days ago we saw the flip cases officially called Clear View cases – handled on video. They are pretty much the same as the S8 cases the old phones even fit! - but feature cutouts for the dual rear camera and repositioned fingerprint reader.

Nokia 7 plus appear with 18:9 Ratio.

Nokia 7 plus will be the first Nokia phone to have the new-standard 18:9 Ratio screen and that screen will stretch 6-inches across. The screen will sit underneath Gorilla Glass while the back of the Nokia 7 Plus will be made of aluminum and house a dual camera with Zeiss branding.

The camera will offer 2x zoom thanks to a Wide Angle 12MP and Telephoto 13MP snappers. The cameras will be bolstered by Nokia's Pro mode for fine shooting parameters control and will be able to capture "Bothies" with the aid of the front-facing snapper (said to be a 16MP one). Nokia 7 plus will also feature a dual-tone design thanks to a few gilded bits and pieces like the fingerprint scanner ring, the dual-camera casing and the Nokia logo on the back. The aluminum is said to have a Ceramic texture and feel, meaning it should be less slippery than plain aluminum.

To complete the list of expected specs the Nokia 7 plus will be powered by a Snapdragon 660, as previously known, mated to 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage and a microSD slot. USB-C port with Quick Charging and Android Oreo out of the box are the other highlights.

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